


Tied to a figurehead

by NYWCgirl



Series: May whump 2020 [14]
Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Historical, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Torture, ships, water whump 2020, ww-no.14
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-14
Updated: 2020-05-14
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:47:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 660
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24176869
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NYWCgirl/pseuds/NYWCgirl
Summary: Captain Jack Dalton’s crew make a horrible discovery when they conquer an enemy ship.
Series: May whump 2020 [14]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1727719
Comments: 12
Kudos: 28





	Tied to a figurehead

**Author's Note:**

> This ficlet is written for the Fourteenth day of May’s month of whump. The prompt was ‘tied to a figurehead.’

When the battle is over, Jack tells his men to take care of the conquered sailors. Those that are dead are tossed overboard. The dead members of their own crew are laid to the side so they can receive a proper sea grave. He sends his first officer to the conquered Assuré, he will have to take the ship back to harbor. She is in good condition and will be taken into their own fleet. When he wants to go below deck to take inventory of the damage, he is called back by a crewmember. By the frantic waving of others, it must be urgent, so he runs to the bow of the ship. Frenchie is pointing to the bow of the Assuré and to his horror he sees a figure tied to the figurehead. The boy is hanging unconscious or even worse, dead, in the ropes that bind him to the charging horse figure.

‘Cut him down, check if he is alive.’

His men get to the other ship and climb down the figurehead while others row towards it. When they are all in position, they start cutting at the ropes while a couple of sailors hang on to all the ropes they have ties around their waists. They did the same with the kid. There is no other way to get him down safely. When they finally have him in the boat, one of the crew members must have found a sign of life, because he starts to wave excitingly.

‘Bring him onboard, so bones can have a look at him.’ Jack calls out.

Jack is waiting for them when they hoist the kid on deck. He is wearing an uniform, so he is one of them. He looks terrible, his hands and feet are purple. He is deadly pale, and doesn´t shiver, so that is not good. Jack tells his men to bring him below deck, so that the doctor can take a look at him. He is a petty officer so they owe him that. Once the kid is placed on Jack’s dining table, the doctor starts to examine the kid and he looks worried.

‘How can I help?’

‘Get some decent light, we will need to take all the remaining rope fibers or they will cause gangrene and he will lose his limbs.’

Jack quickly fetches four more lamps and lights them. The doctor sits down with a set of tweezers and starts the tedious job of pulling out the fibers. The boy’s skin is torn from struggling and Jack can only imagine what the kid has gone through. Sea salt is crusted in his hair and facial hair.

‘Strip him of his wet clothes and put a blanket over him. We must keep him warm. The shirt is shredded so he takes his knife and cuts the remaining parts away. His breeches can be saved, so he shimmies the wet clinging pants of the kid. He takes a woolen blanket and puts it over the pale kid.

‘Ask cookie to boil some water and see if he has some hot broth.’

* * *

The kid remains completely out while they work on him, but more worrying is the flush that appears on his pale face. He’s getting a fever, so Jack puts a wet cloth over his forehead. Suddenly there is a twitch and it is clear the kid is regaining consciousness.

‘Come on, lad, you are safe now, wake up.’

A moan escapes the boy’s mouth but nothing more. The doc tries to spoon some broth in the kid’s mouth, gently massaging his throat so he will swallow. It is the best they can do for the moment. He needs liquids so they can battle the fever.

When his wounds are bandaged, the doctor explains it will be a waiting game. So Jack tells the man to go take care of the rest of the crew while he will keep watch over the kid.


End file.
